Phoenix coach Monty Williams prays for coach Stephen Silas of Houston who had recently lost his father.
The video clip shows Williams shaking hands with Silas after Silas’ team won 111-97, and praying for him. A true depiction of a Christian leader, praying for a colleague who is grieving the loss of his father.
Williams, who won the NBA 2022 Coach of the Year is an outspoken Christian and is being called as a ‘class act’ for the gesture after the game by television broadcaster Jason Romano of Sports Spectrum. “Beautiful display of love and empathy”, Romano wrote while sharing the short video clip.
“Everybody knows he’s one of the best people in the world & it means a lot-He has a great way of communicating. Tonight his way of communicating was thru a hug, which I needed. I love him for that. He’s a good man,” Stephen Silas said.
Suns coach Monty Williams is the real deal. After a tough loss, he embraces Houston coach Stephen Silas and PRAYS for him after the loss of his dad Paul Silas. Beautiful display of love and empathy. pic.twitter.com/MevvBp13At
— Jason Romano (@JasonRomano) December 14, 2022
Williams in a recent interview by Sports Spectrum clearly stated his coaching philosophy, giving glory to God. He humbly explained that he completely relies on God to do what he does as a coach. “The only thing I know that I can do every day is serve others, and that’s basically the foundation of my coaching,” he says.
He said that he is dedicated to a lifetime of service to others as Jesus mandated. “One of my anchor verses is Colossians 3:23, doing my work as ‘unto the Lord and not unto man.’ Another anchor verse for me is Matthew 6:33: ‘Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness and all these things will be added unto you.’ Those two verses help me in my coaching because no matter what’s going on, a big win or tough loss, I know that I’m there to do God’s will. I don’t do it well, and I fail daily. But that’s my reference point. That’s my lighthouse. In doing that, my goal is to serve and to elevate people as best I can.”
It was indeed a beautiful gesture from a God-fearing and humble man. His ‘class act’ of love and concern for a fellow coach, shows that he is a good man. The fact that he embraced and prayed for him, is an indication of a true and genuine Christian leader who in spite of losing a game, is able to lend support and encourage a colleague going through a loss of a family member. Losing a game was secondary to Williams.